MSISDN (Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Digital Network number) is the term used to describe a mobile number in an international format. It is one of the most important numbers for identifying a mobile subscriber. An MSISDN consists of 3 parts:
Country Code – this specifies what country the MSISDN is from. For example a UK MSISDN would have the country code +44 while a US MSISDN would have the country code +1.
National Destination Code (NDC) – this forms the second part of the MSISDN and is three digits long in the North American Numbering Plan.
Subscriber Number (SN) – this is the dialled number required to reach a mobile network customer.
Despite the fact that the MSISDN is equivalent to a phone number, it is not a direct mapping to a mobile handset. In fact, it doesn’t even map directly to the SIM card. An MSISDN allows a Short Message Service Centre (SMSC) to determine the country and mobile operator a subscriber number belongs to. From there, the SMSC can query the mobile operator’s HLR (Home Location Register) for information used to route the SMS to the handset.
Using MSISDNs in Sinch APIs
MSISDNs are integral to using our APIs to send and receive messages:
SMS API
Conversation API
RCS API
In our APIs, MSISDNs must be between 7 and 18 digits in length and in international format:
MSISDNs can be sent in with or without a leading + (so therefore, +123456789 or 123456789 are both valid) or with a leading 00. Any space, dash or bracket will also be ignored by the API.
All MSISDNs returned by the REST API will be without a + or 00 prefix, even if they were sent in with one.
Take a look at the Sinch SMS Product page to learn more about our SMS products, or click here to sign up to our self-service portal and get started today.
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